"Juliana! Where are you? Come out please," I heard someone calling me, but I refused to get up and out of my hiding place. This is the only place I have to myself. The only place I can come to think in peace.
"Juliana I'm done fooling around. Come out, now, you ill-mannered child!" My older sister was in my line of vision. She was wearing her usual attire: an ordinary flowery dress with a white apron. Her hands were busy worrying the dense fabric of her apron and her bright green eyes were frantically looking for my scrawny figure. Victoria turned around so her back was facing me. I took the advantage and quietly made my way out of my secret hiding place to a dark space behind a bale of hay.
"I could have sworn I saw her come in here this time. Maybe she comes through here as a diversion," she said to herself and sighed heavily. Victoria turned around for one last check before she opened the door and left.
Once the door was shut again, I made my way down the ladder in complete darkness. I jumped off of the second to last step and planted my bare feet on the itchy straw. I superstitiously wiped my hands like I always did, even if I had nothing on them, and turned around to walk out my secret door. But when I looked up, there was a dark figure staring back at me, with a light of some sort in his left hand. I gasped and back up until I felt the ladder stab me in the back.
"Who are you and what do you want?" I whispered. He said nothing but move towards me instead, although, not in a threatening manner-it was friendlier. I reached for a weapon of sorts but could grasp onto nothing as the man came further towards me.
"I, Miss Juliana, am a human and I have heard that you are in need of my assistance." He bowed and held out his hand for me to take.
"I have not told anyone that I needed assistance for anything. What is your name I mean?" I climbed back onto the ladder and was ready to run for my life if need be.
"I have no name. Yes that is true, but I have…"
"Please leave," I said rudely, but frankly I did not care. I was so scared that I lost all sense of politeness.
"I am yours to command, and if you wish me to leave, then I must go. But I warn you, I will be back." He turned and swept away into the shadows with his mysterious light source and then he was gone. Just like that. He vanished into thin air. I ran towards the barn door and ran with all I could back to the house.
I burst through the back door and ran until I reached my room. I then took comfort in my small bed made of straw and collapsed on top of it. A few seconds later I could hear Victoria's footsteps coming up the stairs to my attic room. She knocked twice and opened the door.
"I went looking for you in the barn, but you weren't there. What made you come home running so fast? Did the horse scare you again?" She came and sat on the edge of my bed and patted my hand. I could see the concern written on her face, but I couldn't believe it. She hadn't truly concerned herself in my affairs since we were small children.
"The horse did not scare me dear sister. I was just hungry and wanted something to eat, but when I arrived my hunger had worn off so I decided I would go to bed early," I lied. She would believe anything but the truth.
She patted my hand once more before she returned to the kitchen. I changed out of my dress and into my one pair of night clothes and washed up. I climbed into the scratchy bed and covered myself with the old horse blanket Cole, Victoria's husband, was so kind to give me. I rolled onto my side so I could see the door and there the man was again.
"What are you doing in my bedchambers?" I almost yelled in fear, hoping Cole would hear me and come to my rescue from this psychotic person. "How did you get in here without anyone seeing you, or me hearing you?" I pulled my legs up to my chin and covered my body with the little blanket. I scooted myself until I was in the corner and I knew that no one could be behind me. The man stayed where he was, unlike earlier that evening, and calmly set his cloak over the one chair in the dusty room.
"I am a man of many secrets, and how I move about is one of them. I cannot tell you how I arrived in this place you call your bedchambers. Now, you summoned me so what is it that you need Miss?" He gracefully sat down in the wooden rocking chair that used to belong to my mother.
"What is your name sir?" I asked not moving from my spot.
"I've said before milady, that I have no name. But you may name me if you would like Miss." He sat with his hands on his knees, staring intently at me. I thought for a moment about a fitting name.
"Rune. Your name shall be Rune. It means 'secret'."
"Very good milady. Now back to business if you will, what is it that you require?"
"I did not summon you. I was trying to sleep and then you showed up out of nowhere. Why are you calling 'milady' and 'miss', for I am neither. I am just a farm girl." I struggled to keep my voice low. This man was not an ordinary person. He was unreal, like a character from the fairy tale stories papa used to read to me.
"You are both milady. You are much more than just a farm girl Miss. Do you not know who you are? Are you not Juliana Belle Astrid?" He raised an eyebrow at me as if daring me to say I wasn't.
"Yes…how do you know that?" I tried to back further into my corner, as if it would protect me from this stranger who seemed to know everything about me. I thought about screaming for Victoria, but then Rune might just disappear without warning and then she would think even worse of me. There was no one who could, or would, help me. I was alone and very frightened.
"I know all things concerning you milady. I do not mean to frighten you by this. All things will come to you soon enough. Just know that I am at your beck and call, no matter the time of day. I am your personal advisor." He bowed in his seat—for effect or common courtesy, I did not know.
"Personal advisor for what? I do not need to be advised about anything. This is just a dream, a bad dream. If I fall asleep in my dream form, it will all be over." Therefore I lay back down onto my bed and closed my eyes, willing myself to sleep so I would wake up without having to fear Rune…I mean this dream man. Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep without another word to Rune, or whoever he was.
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When I woke the next morning, no one was in my chambers. There wasn't even a sign that he had been there, if it all wasn't a dream. So I got out of bed and made my way to the wash room to prepare myself for the day.
I went downstairs and ate my breakfast before making my way outside to do my chores. Even though I am a burden to my sister and her husband, I still felt obligated to help out in some way, even if they did not want me.
After papa died, it was Victoria's responsibility to make sure I was taken care of, whether she liked it or not. Therefore, I worked during the morning hours and then had the afternoon and evenings to myself. That is when I would go off to the woods or to the river and think.
There was nothing in this life for me and no one who cared about me, so why should I keep on living this dreadful life? I thought about running away, to try and make it on my own, to start a new life somewhere else, where someone would maybe think twice about me.
As I milked the cows and gathered the eggs, I kept contemplating this thought and decided I could run to the city and then catch a ride to the sea to help out at the town there. Then again out of nowhere Rune came up to me. I jumped and the eggs fell out of my basket.
"Why do you keep following me?" I asked as I picked up the eggs that were still in one piece.
"I am not following you milady. I am merely complying with your request." He took off his hat and bowed.
"Once again, Rune, I did not call you. Please leave me to my duties and don't ever come back."
"A person of your rank, milady, should not be doing commoners work," he said and gently took the basket from my hands and started to gather the eggs for me. I was scared and confused, so I acted upon impulse: I walked over to him and snatched the basket out of his hands and made my way to the house.
"This is not commoners work. It is what people do to survive now-a-days, unless you're still living back 300 years ago. Every class does their own gardening…around here anyway. Maybe not in the city," I barely spoke the last part, afraid that I proved his point. But I was a commoner so I had nothing to be ashamed of. "Besides, I am a commoner, if I were living in the city. Here we are equal. There are no class divisions when you are in this town."
"You are misunderstood, milady. You are not a commoner, surely you know this. You are the Queen of Camir, and your people need you. You have been gone a very long time your highness." He bowed again. I just stood there laughing. Me, a queen? He has to be joking. I don't even know how to read, let alone rule a country…which by the way, doesn't exist.
"No, you must be mistaken. I am no queen and there is no country called Kemire," I managed to squeak out between my fits of laughter.
"I do not know why you are laughing milady, but you are the queen, and Camir is a country that does in fact, exist. I do not know how you became so ignorant of this information, but it is my duty and privilege to help you, so I will do my best by your father." I stopped laughing at the mention of my father.
"Do not talk of whom you do not know. You are walking in dangerous territory. Leave me now and never return. I do not want to hear from you again, especially about this inane babbling about me being a queen over a country that does not exist!" I turned sharply on my heel and made my way swiftly into the back door. When I turned to look out the window, Rune was gone.
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Rune did not show up throughout the rest of the evening. So I went into supper with a gay spirit, which was odd for me, for I always was in such a melancholy state. I pranced to my chair and sat while Victoria busied herself putting different foods onto the table. Cole was nowhere to be seen.
Once we all were settled down and were serenely eating our meals, I decided I would ask a question, against my better judgment. "Victoria, have you ever heard of a country called Kemire?" I looked across the table to see her truthful reaction, and was rewarded with a shocked mixed with surprised look on her face.
"Not Kemire, no, but Camir, yes."
"What's the difference?" I said, interrupting her.
"The way you pronounce it," she answered my question.
"Victoria, darling," Cole joined in, "There is no such a place called Comhere." He gave his wife a look of enigma. Meanwhile, I kept muttering 'Camir' under my breath so I would not make the mistake of mispronouncing it again, even if it was make-believe.
Victoria disregarded her husband and stared at me intently, "Where did you hear that name?" she inquired fiercely. I swallowed nervously because of the violent look in her eyes. I thought up multiple convincing lies, and tried to avoid the ones I had used before.
"I heard someone mention it in passing," I replied as if it was no big deal to me.
"You lie. No one has ever heard of Camir. Now, you have one last chance to tell me, truthfully, where you heard the name, or I will deliver the harshest punishment you have or will ever receive." Her bottom lip curled up in a cruel smile and her eyes—if it were possible—had an even more severe look to them.
"I am telling you the truth. I did hear it in passing!" I tried my best not to raise my voice, but fail miserably in doing so.
"Tell me, dear sister, did a tall foreboding man appear to you recently, out of thin air? Did he have dark eyes and dark hair? Did he wear a black cloak and hat? Was his name Aelfwine?" With each word she said, it seemed that her voice raised an octave, until she was finally screaming at me and she was barely a meter from me.
"No, a man by the name Aelfwine has not appeared to me," I said quietly and bowed my head in shame. "But, if you don't mind me asking, what is Camir?" I raised my head again and Victoria was back in her seat, looking as if the events of the last ten minutes never happened. And Cole, poor soul, sat there mortified that his sweet little angel of a wife was capable of such brutal treatment. Inwardly I laughed. He had absolutely no idea what this demon-possessed woman was capable of. If he thought that was bad, he should have seen her when we were adolescents.
"It is nothing you need to concern yourself about child. It is ancient history that everyone has forgotten about." She almost looked serene. It frightens me how easily her moods can change. Then suddenly, I had a brilliant idea.
"Do you mind if I borrow the keys to the storeroom? I thought I'd do some tiding up," I asked politely. Victoria gave me a cautious look and then handed me the key ring that she kept on her person at all times. "Thanks," I said and abruptly left the table. I tried to walk without showing my eagerness to "clean" the storeroom, and then I broke out into a run as soon as I turned the corner to head up the stairs.
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I had been in the attic for several hours, looking for the old fairytale books pap used to read to me when I was small. I could vaguely remember some of my favorite stories, but the covers of the books I could remember vividly. I had this inclination that if I found the books, I would discover what exactly Camir was and what Rune meant by me being a queen. Now that I actually thought about it, Camir sounded so familiar, but I couldn't place why, and I knew that when I found those books, I'd know exactly what was going on.
I looked for several more hours. My eyes were drooping and I almost fell asleep a few times, but I was quick to forget my drowsiness after I found my favorite fairytale book. I almost cried I was so giddy. Soon, I would hopefully know what was happening to me. I thought for a moment of who I knew that could teach me to read, or to read to me, so that I would be able to figure this complicated mess out. I honestly never wanted anybody else to touch or read these books that my papa had read to me. They were precious and I only wanted to share the memories these books held between papa and me. But I knew it would take too long for someone to teach me to read, so I had no choice but to find someone who would read to me.
Elder Myla was the one person I could think of who would not turn me away out of disdain. She was the only person in the town who was kind to me. I do not understand why, but I am always grateful for her. I decided that that was what I was going to do with my afternoon. I would take this book, and any others I would find, and ask her to read them to me. With this in mind, I was peaceful and would have a good night's rest.
I took my prized possession and headed towards the storeroom door, which lead right into my chambers. I carefully placed the book under my bed so Victoria would not see it if I were to sleep in the next morning, and got ready for bed.
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I woke up the next morning with a start. Heidi, the dog, somehow managed to get into my room. My guess was that Victoria let her lose. Nevertheless, Heidi jumped on top of me and started to lick me from my head to my toes, not missing a centimeter of me.
"Get off Heidi!" I said, laughing, and shoved her off my bed. I pointed to the door in which she came and she left. I dressed hurriedly and rushed out the door without breakfast to finish my chores quickly so I could learn as much as possible.
It was high noon by the time I finished my chores. I ran speedily up the stairs to my quarters and picked up an old basket. I pulled the book out from under my bed and gently placed it into the basket, covering it up with a cloth used for food shopping. I then ran back down the stairs and grabbed a few bits of the lunch served on the table and made my way out the front door. I walked with earnest to Elder Myla's house in town.
I knocked warily on her big oak door and waited patiently for Miss Myla to welcome me in. She opened the door a crack and asked who was there.
"It's me Miss Myla. It's Juliana. I've come to ask a favor of you." I could not imagine why she would not open the door completely, unless she felt threatened.
"Oh, good, child. I wondered when I would be seeing you again. I'm so glad you came. Come in, come in!" She said as she hurried me into her friendly home. She shut the door quickly after I stepped inside. "We are safe to talk freely in here my dear child," she said and gestured to a chair for me to sit in.
"What do you mean Miss Myla? Are you in some kind of danger?"
"Yes and no, but you are in grave danger I fear. I fear only for you my dear. Now, before I go on explaining myself, tell me this favor you want of me."
"Well," I said timidly, afraid now that I came on a petty excuse, "I was hoping you would read to me out of one of my father's old fairytale books. He used to read them to me all the time, but I cannot remember what any of them were about."
"Can you not read them yourself?" She asked. I shook my head and I could feel my face turn red out of embarrassment.
"I cannot read Miss Myla."
"Cannot your sister or her husband read to you?"
"I don't want them to know about it. Victoria will surely discourage it and more than likely take papa's books away from me. And I definitely do not want that to happen."
"Alright then, I will read to you, and at the same time, I will teach you to read." She smiled at me and held out her hand to receive the book I had brought. I reached for my basket and uncovered the precious book and tenderly hand it to her. She observed it for a long moment before nodding her head and opened the book with expert precision. Her eyes scanned the first page of the book and then looked up at me. "Where do you want to start? There are several little stories in here. Do you have anything in particular in mind?"
"Actually yes, I do. Is there anything that mentions Camir, perhaps?"
"Yes, here we are," Myla said and she turned to the page with the story and began to read. The girl's name was Juliana, just like me. I was curious about this but I held my tongue. I distinctly remember papa talking about an Aubrey, but never a Juliana, for I would surely remember the use of my own name in a fairytale story.
She read about trolls and elves and dwarves and humans, all living together in one country, called Camir, in peaceful harmony. But Juliana did not come in until the third chapter, by which point it was getting late and I need to head back home.
"Thanks so much for doing this for me Miss Myla. Oh, I almost forgot, you wanted to tell me something?" I inquired with one hand on the door, ready to leave.
"Don't worry about it dear child. I will tell you tomorrow. You will come back tomorrow, will you not?"
"Yes, Miss Myla. If you wish." And with that, I opened the door and left.
The journey home was uneventful, thankfully. I had plenty of time to mull over the contents of the story thus far. I wondered why papa would change the main characters name. He could have possibly done it to prevent me from thinking that I could live a fairytale life and everything would turn out as a happy ending, but he could have also done it to protect my future, which made no sense to me at the moment. I could not even think of the reason that made that exact thought cross my mind. Bizarre things have started to happen to me ever since Rune showed up. Rune. Rune! He had something to do with all this. I could feel it in my gut. But whether he was a help or a hindrance, I did not know. All these thoughts I left alone when I walked into the kitchen to smell my supper waiting for me.
"Where have you been?" Victoria scolded me when I had shut the door.
"I was visiting Miss Myla. And I will be gone tomorrow too," I said coolly and took my seat at the dinner table.
"Fine, as long as you are not pestering anyone. I don't want to receive complaints about you, or you won't know the meaning of pain when I'm done with you." She sat down and began to serve us our supper.
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The following afternoon I made my way to Elder Myla's house. I had not seen Rune in almost two days. This excited me. Maybe I had been hallucinating all of this and the story was just a coincidence. When I entered Miss Myla's house, she had me sit in the same chair as the previous day and served me finger foods and tea.
"My dear child. I cannot delay any further this foreboding news that I must impart to you. I said yesterday you were in grave danger. This story I am tell you is in fact not a story at all, but the history in the future. It is your dreadful history. Your father told you this story to hopefully spare you from this ghastly fate, yet he knew he could not accomplish this task. His hope for you was that you would make wise decisions and alter the story so that you would have a happy ending. Therefore, I must not read the whole story to you, just parts of it to save you from certain grief. In saying this, my beloved child, you must tell me if you have met a strange man. Do not lie or hide it from me, it is imperative that I know so I can act accordingly." I looked at her serious blue eyes. So I had not been hallucinating. All that has happened to me the last four days is real. This horror is real. I took several deep breathes before replying to Myla's question.
"Yes, four days ago, a strange man appeared in the barn out of nowhere. I haven't seen him in two days though. I told him leave and never come back. He was frightening me. He said he had no name, therefore I could name him. And he kept saying that I was the Queen of Camir." I proceeded to tell her all he said and all that had happened.
"He's working faster this time," she muttered, probably not intended for my ears to hear, "Do not trust him. He will bring harm upon you. He says he is your advisor, this is true, but do not trust his judgment. You must decide for yourself what is right and wrong." She took hold of my hands and gave them an affectionate squeeze and gave me a weak smile before returning to her rocking chair. "Now, give me the book so we may be done early." I lay to rest the fact that she said that she was in danger also. I would save that question for another time. Although I feared that time would be too late.
She skipped over the parts that described me and went to the important facts, like the way of ruling, the laws, basically how the country was supposed to be ran, before it went evil. The story said that the king's advisor went bad and tried to take over but was unsuccessful. The king in return imprisoned said advisor with a powerful spell, which turned into a curse upon the king's descendants. A blood relative of the king was the only one able to break the spell, but the book did not say how to break the spell, and I'm sure Elder Myla was not going to tell me. I stopped thinking and listened more closely, afraid that if I missed one tiny detail, all would be lost.
"Now, child, I will stop. I cannot read you anymore. Dear heavens, look at the time. You must be going." She shooed me to the door with my book in my hand. And then, as if she remembered something she stopped and gave me a mournful look, "If I am not here tomorrow, don't fret. I have gone into hiding. Remember, do not think anyone dead until you have seen a body." She winked at me and pushed me out the door, closing it tightly after me.
I pondered this before I made my leave. Why would she say such things if she was not in some terrible danger? I considered the story and what Miss Myla told me on my way home and then Rune came out of nowhere once again.
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